Emerging trends in the Australian regulatory environment

Balancing appropriate regulatory restrictions without stifling innovation or constraining productivity is a perennial challenge for law and policymakers.

As Australia's regulatory environment continues to evolve, recent developments – including expanded anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) laws, stricter foreign bribery legislation, a new scams prevention framework and enhanced data privacy measures – require organisations to meet new and expanded compliance requirements while preparing for future regulatory shifts and technological change.

In the lead up to the 2025 federal election, the Australian Government pursued an ambitious law reform agenda, despite a backdrop of global uncertainty and instability. While many of these reforms harmonise the Australian regulatory environment with regimes overseas, the re-elected government has recently acknowledged that long-term economic prosperity is at risk due to a persistent slowdown in